The 2006 Elite League speedway season was the 72nd season of the top division of

speedway Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta *Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana Types of races and race cours ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and governed by the

Speedway Control Board The Speedway Control Bureau (SCB), known as the Speedway Control Board between 1948 and 2002, governs the sport of motorcycle speedway in the United Kingdom on behalf of the Auto Cycle Union (ACU). The directors are appointed by the ACU and Br ...

(SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association ( BSPA).

Season summary

In 2006, the league consisted of eleven teams, after the newly named Reading Bulldogs, moved up from the

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

. The Championship was won by the Peterborough Panthers by a single race point in the play-off final. Peterborough and Reading battled each other throughout the season finishing level on points in the regular season table before Peterborough edged Reading in the Play off final. Peterborough had a strong all round squad and included Danish trio of Hans Andersen, Jesper Jensen and

Niels Kristian Iversen Niels Kristian Trochmann Iversen (, born 20 June 1982 in Esbjerg, Denmark) is an international motorcycle speedway rider. He was part of the Danish teams that won the Speedway World Cup in 2006, 2008, 2012 and 2014. Early life ...

, in addition to Australian Ryan Sullivan. Reading who had come up from the division below had recruited

Greg Hancock Gregory Alan Hancock (born June 3, 1970 in Whittier, California) is an American former professional motorcycle speedway rider. As of 2023, he was one of only six riders to have won the individual World Championship four or more times. In addit ...

as their main heat leader who finished 7th in the league averages which were headed once again by Australian stars Jason Crump and

Leigh Adams Leigh Scott Adams (born 28 April 1971 in Mildura, Victoria)Oakes, P.(2004). ''British Speedway Who's Who''. is an Australian former motorcycle speedway rider. He is a multiple Speedway Grand Prix winner and World Team Champion. He also w ...

Final table

Play-offs

Semi-final decided over one leg. Grand Final decided by aggregate scores over two legs. Semi-finals * Peterborough Panthers 52-40 Coventry Bees * Reading Bulldogs 51-43 Swindon Robins Final First leg Second leg The Peterborough Panthers were declared League Champions, winning on aggregate 95-94.

Elite League Knockout Cup

The 2006 Elite League Knockout Cup was the 68th edition of the

Knockout Cup A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

for tier one teams. Coventry Bees were the winners of the competition. First round Quarter-finals Semi-finals

Final

First leg Second leg The Coventry Bees were declared Knockout Cup Champions, winning on aggregate 101-85.

Leading averages

Riders & final averages

Arena Essex * 8.08 * 7.78 * 6.87 * 6.70 * 6.53 * 6.48 * 6.41 * 3.77 * 3.68 * 2.88 * 1.40 Belle Vue * 11.21 * 8.08 * 7.75 * 7.51 * 4.89 * 4.26 * 3.61 * 1.90 Coventry * 9.05 * 7.93 * 7.84 * 7.13 * 6.59 * 6.16 * 5.83 * 5.54 * 4.54 Eastbourne * 9.92 * 7.79 * 7.66 * 7.14 * 5.29 * 5.04 * 4.88 * 4.06 * 4.00 * 3.42 Ipswich * 8.92 * 8.10 * 8.02 * 6.50 * 6.47 * 5.58 * 4.09 * 3.62 * 2.99 Oxford * * * * * * * * * * * * Peterborough * * * * * * * * * * * Poole * * * * * * * * * * * Reading * * * * * * * * Swindon * * * * * * * * * * Wolverhampton * * * * * * * * * *

References

{{United Kingdom Speedway Seasons SGB Premiership 2006 in British motorsport